Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told his American counterpart Joe Biden on Tuesday that he wants to open a “new era” of cooperation with the United States, a statement he made after he lifted Turkey’s veto on Sweden joining NATO, EFE news agency reported.

Erdogan’s statement was made before the press at the beginning of the meeting with Biden on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Vilnius. Erdogan also thanked Biden for his congratulations after winning the presidential election in May, Agerpres reports.

“Mr. President, my dear friend, first of all I would like to thank you for congratulating me after my election to my current position. Thank you for the greetings you sent me,” Erdogan began.

He added that “now is the time” for the heads of state of Turkey and the United States to meet more often, and assessed that their meeting “is the first step forward.”

“Our previous relations were less warm, but now we are starting a new era,” Erdogan added. This new era of cooperation between Turkey and the US will last at least five years, that is, until the end of his newly obtained presidential term, he estimated further, also expressing the wish that the alliance between their countries would continue after his re-entry. Biden in the 2024 presidential election.

This last comment visibly surprised the American president, who replied with a smile: “Thank you! I want to meet you again in the next five years.”

Their meeting came after Erdogan lifted his veto on Sweden joining NATO, a country he accused of not cooperating in extraditing to Turkey some people it considers linked to terrorist organizations, particularly from Kurdish territory.

The decision to lift the veto was announced on Monday after Erdogan met with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, mediated by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

But as Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan acknowledged Tuesday, the U.S. also played an important role in the mediation, including making some concessions. Thus, Sullivan said, Washington has conveyed to Ankara that it is ready to facilitate the delivery to Turkey of some of the latest generation F-16 aircraft, the delivery of which is still blocked by the US Congress.

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